Cron expression for every 6 hours
0 */6 * * *
Open in the tool →
0 */6 * * * runs four times a day, every six hours, starting at midnight.
In plain English: “Every 6 hours”
Field breakdown
| Minute | 0 |
| Hour | */6 |
| Day of month | * |
| Month | * |
| Day of week | * |
Next run times (UTC)
- Mon, Jul 6, 2026 · 6:00 AM UTC in 2 hours
- Mon, Jul 6, 2026 · 12:00 PM UTC in 8 hours
- Mon, Jul 6, 2026 · 6:00 PM UTC in 14 hours
- Tue, Jul 7, 2026 · 12:00 AM UTC in 20 hours
- Tue, Jul 7, 2026 · 6:00 AM UTC in 1 day
See these in your own timezone.
When to use it
- Full backups a few times a day.
- Rebuilding a search index or cache several times daily.
- Polling a source that updates roughly every few hours.
Related schedules
Good to know
- 0 0,6,12,18 * * * is the explicit list form of the same schedule.